


Vegas Vistas

by waywardbard



Series: The Future's Nothing New: Further Tales of the Next Generation [3]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Gen, Team Free Will 2.0
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-12
Updated: 2012-12-12
Packaged: 2017-11-23 15:04:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,351
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/623485
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waywardbard/pseuds/waywardbard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After his last encounter, Asher decides to strike out on his own.  Michael is less than approving.  Erika's baby sister Kim decides to help.  Lucas offers his pad, which may or may not turn out to be a huge mistake.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Asher had avoided being alone with Mike for weeks.  He’d cited work and a social life for reasons he couldn’t hang out or even babysit Cole, and he answered every call of veiled concern with a text reassuring Mike he was fine and not entrapped by some monster.  (Not that Mike ever asked, but Asher knew that fear was going to be behind every contact.)  The only time he couldn’t avoid him was the weekly dinners, and even then Asher always ducked out early for carefully timed shifts at the bar.

Which was why tonight he told Mike to sit his ass down and let him do the dishes alone, since he’d bailed on him so many weeks.  His heart pounded unnecessarily hard as he worked, and when he was finished, he grabbed a couple of beers, met Mike’s eyes across the living room, and nodded towards the porch.  He heard his brother briefly excuse himself and a quick verbal inquiry from Erika, but the door barely closed behind him before Mike was behind him, looking equal parts jilted and concerned.

“So you’re talking to me now?”

“Not if that’s what you call talking,” Asher said, his mouth tightening as he sat on the swing.  “If you want you can go back inside and I’ll have two beers for myself.”

Mike swiped one of the beers out of his hand before he could object, then sat and took a hard pull out of it before scowling.  He said nothing as the tension grew in the space between them.

Asher ran a hand over his hair, still a habit even though it was now shorn close to his head.  It was band-aid pulling time.  He took a deep drink before saying, “I’m moving to Vegas in two weeks.”

Mike let out a bitter laugh, then shook his head and stared down at his knees, already peeling back the label on the bottle.  

“Why am I not surprised.”

Asher stared at him, then quickly took another drink.  “To be honest, I thought you would be.”

“You haven’t said more than three words to me in two weeks, you’ve been avoiding me, and you cut all your damn hair off.  It was either Vegas, or you were joining the military, and I knew you weren’t gonna do military.”

“Why? Don’t think I could handle that either?” Asher practically spat the words.  Mike didn’t answer immediately.  Instead he took a steadying drink from the bottle, eyes staring out toward the empty street, his expression pained before swallowing hard.

“No.  Because I know you wouldn’t like the idea of not being able to see Mom whenever you wanted.”  There was obviously more to it than that, but he didn’t say anything else.

“Not like I can swing by every weekend from Vegas,” Asher said heatedly.  

“You mean, not that you will.”

Fire raced through Asher as he glared at Mike.  “It’ll take all the money I have just getting there, so no, I _can’t_.”

“Why even bother telling me you’re goin’, Ash?” Mike said, avoiding his eye and still staring down the street.  His voice was flat and hard.  “Why not just go in the middle of the night?”

“Why are you being such a prick?!” Asher pushed to his feet, standing in front of Mike’s gaze.  “You wanna say something, say it, and stop playing the guilt game.”

“What’s the point?” Mike countered, his head tipping back in order to look up at him.  “Nothin’ I say is gonna matter, in the end.  I told you to leave it alone back in high school and you didn’t.  It doesn’t matter that nearly dyin’ three times because of this stuff happened either.  So why bother tellin’ me you’re leavin’?”

“Because you’re my fucking brother and I’m going to miss you even though you’re a prick,” Asher snapped.  “And because I’m not ashamed of what I’m doing.  Why the hell should I be?”

“Because you’re being kind of a fucking hypocrite,” Mike said, scowling again.  “You yelled at my wife about how she’s a horrible mother for leaving her son at home while she puts her life in jeopardy, and you’re tryin’ to do the same.”

“I don’t have a _child_.  And I didn’t mean to yell at Erika; I wanted to yell at _you_.”

“Just because you don’t have a kid doesn’t mean you don’t have people who love you and worry about you, asshole,” Mike interjected, clearly ignoring the last part.

“It’s not the same thing!” Asher said, a mix of a snarl and a laugh.  “You’re supposed to be there for your child, to protect them, because you’re the only thing they’ve got.  And you can’t do that if you’re dead.”

“Is that how you think about Dad, too?” Mike countered, holding the beer bottle so hard the veins in his hand were visible.

Asher stood there in heavy silence before sitting next to him again.  It took him a couple tries before he finally spoke.  “First thing I remember about Dad is Mom pointing to him in a picture and saying, ‘That’s your daddy. He’s a hero.’ People were always saying that to me. When I understood what that meant, I felt proud. But when I got older, I hated hearing it. I started wondering why those people mattered to him more than me. It’s selfish as fuck, but I didn’t care. I didn’t want him to be a hero. I just wanted him to be there.”

“The last thing I remember about Dad,” Mike said, his voice quiet and gritty.  “Was him tellin’ me to take care of you and Mom.  That was my one job.”

“You did.  You’ve always taken care of me.  But I shouldn’t be your job anymore.  Cole should.”  Asher swallowed hard, guilt settling in his stomach as he said, “And it’s four times I nearly died. I didn’t tell you about one of them, because Cole almost got hurt, too.”

The silence that fell between them was deadening.  He could practically feel Michael’s eyes boring holes into the side of his face before it turned and he brought the bottle mechanically up to his mouth to drink from it.  When it was empty he put it on the ground.

“When.”

Asher would take a drink if his hands weren’t shaking.  “A couple months ago, with that ghost sending herself through email.  She imitated Luke on messenger and I got the video.  She got me pinned and Cole was crying and I was fucking _useless_.  I realized that if you died, I could never step up like you did for Dad.  I could never protect Cole like you can.  I should be the one out there because I’m not risking much.”  He looked at Mike, his gaze steady.  “You should be home protecting your son.”

“Do what you have to do,” Mike said, no longer looking at him.  “I can’t stop you.”

Staring at him long and hard, Asher willed him to say something else.  When the silence stretched on, he finally got up and went inside, saying quick, quiet good-byes to Mom, Erika, and Cole before walking out past Mike and to his car.  As he started driving off, he could see Erika coming out onto the porch to check on Mike before embracing him.  They stayed that way even after he could barely make out their shapes in the rearview mirror anymore.

* * *

Cole was asleep.  It was one of the few times they had ever used the crib, and only as part of a test to see if he could make it through the night without too much trouble.  It had been a long day, with a lot of bouncing around and laughing.  He was out like a light.  Mike was grateful for that, if only because it gave him one less thing to worry extensively about as he sat on the couch in the living room, halfway through a bottle of whiskey as he stared at the television screen.

He maybe pulled out the home videos twice a year, and never quite got through to the end without turning it off, but it was on its second play-through that evening.  The sound was barely audible, but the camera operator’s voice -- being closer to the mic -- was louder than the little boys currently on the screen.  Two hands came down over the sofa, rubbing his shoulders a moment before Erika walked around, curling up next to him.

“I’d ask if you’re okay, but we both know the answer to that,” she said quietly.  He took another swig straight from the bottle, his arm looping around her hip so naturally he didn’t even realize he had done it until he felt the cloth beneath his hand.  Somewhere under the dense fog of inebriation, he knew he should feel guilty that he was allowing her to see him in his current state.  He also knew that the one time he’d come home from being out drinking all night, she’d given him a black eye and screamed at him.   _Better to be home where I can watch your back._  

“I hate myself,” came his low reply.

She ran a hand into his hair, massaging gently.  “Why?”  She kept her voice quiet and calm, and his eyes fell closed.

“Because I couldn’t stop it.  All I’ve ever tried to do is keep him safe.”

“You have,” she said firmly.  “I know you have trouble realizing it, but Asher is full grown.  He is smart and strong and capable, and it’s hard to blame him for wanting to be like you.”

Mike barely held back the sob bubbling in his chest.  Another swig did the trick.  “I don’t want him to be like me.  Hell, most of the time, I don’t even wanna be me.”

Erika let out a long breath but didn’t take it personally.  Mike would say just about anything when he got like this.  “It is hard sometimes.”

“At least he finished school and got to live his life a little,” Mike mumbled, staring at the screen.  The camera was settled on the end of a table and his father reappeared, picking the two of them up from the ground and spinning them around in a circle.  Laughter filtered out from the speakers, small and distant.

She kissed his cheek.  “If it makes you feel better, I don’t think he agrees that that was a good thing.  I think he envies everything about you.”

“The only good thing about my life ‘sides him and Mom is you and Cole,” Mike said quietly.  “Everyone thought I was crazy before you.  Even... even Mom did.”  His mother still didn’t know what he and Erika were doing when they were out ‘on tour’ or ‘scouting locations.’  And with Asher moving to Vegas -- likely with Luke, because why else would he have chosen Vegas -- what would she think?  Had Asher even told her yet?  Michael quelled the thought with another deep pull from the bottle.

She frowned.  “I know, baby.  I can’t even imagine what that must have been like.”

Mike put the bottle down, pulling his arm free from her for a moment as he did so.  Once it was safely out of reach he reached for her, tugging her across his lap before burying his face against her neck and holding on tightly.  She hugged him close, running her hand over his hair and kissing his forehead.

“Should I tell him I’ll train him if he stays?” he asked against her neck.  “Or should I let him try’n figure this shit out for himself?”

She gave a sigh.  “It’s hard to tell what would be best.  Maybe you could let him know that you would be open to training him, and letting him choose.”

It wasn’t a question worth finding the answer to in his current state.  He knew he was drunk.  It was only a matter of time before he passed out.  But for a few moments it was just him and Erika -- nobody needed saving and their son was safe in his bed.  He didn’t want to think anymore.  Pulling back, he leaned his neck against the couch in order to look up at her.

“Do you wanna have another kid?”

She raised an eyebrow.  “Like, right this second?”

“You’d have to grow ‘em first, so obviously...”

She gave a breath of a laugh.  “Yes, I remember that bit. My vagina is still recovering from that bit.”

“But do you want to?”

“I think so. It hasn’t been easy, but I think it’s worth it.”

Asher’s words filtered in through the fog, about how he should be protecting his family and not fighting a war that would likely never end.  Michael brought one hand up to Erika’s face, cupping her cheek and stroking his thumb over her lips.

“When you know so, lemme know,” he said gently.  “We won’t until you know so.”

“So you are certain about wanting another one?  As soon as possible?” she asked, kissing his thumb.

“Might need to get something with a bit more income than the hotel work,” he said solemnly.

“True,” she said.  Then she frowned slightly.  “Is what Asher said getting to you?”

“Li’l bit,” he admitted, his eyes dropping from hers to settle somewhere around her throat.

Her hand slid under his chin, lifting it up.  “Don’t. He’s dealing with his own issues. My parents were hunters and I turned out brilliantly, if I do say so myself. We can do this.”

Michael sighed quietly, staring up into her eyes.  With Erika’s parents and siblings on the sidelines, ready to play back-up in any situation they needed, along with the many other friends they’d made part of their network, he knew deep down that she was right.  They weren’t alone.  Whatever they couldn’t handle, someone would be there to help them.  The only thing standing in the way of that was pride, and pride got a person killed.  He knew that first hand.

“Yeah,” he murmured.  “You’re right.  I know you’re right.  I’m just-- y’know.”  He let out another little sigh, half wishing he hadn’t put the bottle down.  “Y’wanna practice maybe?”

She smiled, scratching her nails through his hair.  “I’d love to, but I think you might have had too much of the bottle for that to happen.”

“Me and my bright ideas,” he grumbled, though without any gusto.  Leaning up, he brushed his lips against her neck, one hand moving up beneath her night shirt to stroke her back.  “Could just bring the baby monitor out into the car with us and make out.  Like the good old days.”

She slowly smiled, hips shifting on his lap.  “Sounds like a good plan to me.”

* * *

No one could help Asher move his couch on Thursday.

He’d been packing up all week, sorting which things were coming with him and which he’d store in his old room at Mom’s.  He hadn’t really planned on moving the couch that day, but he realized he was finished early and it was the biggest thing he had to get to Mom’s, so he’d spent all morning calling every friend he had.  None could come.  They had family and real jobs, lives and responsibilities.  A lot of really great excuses.

And he couldn’t call Mike.  Not after Sunday.  Not now that Mike might just say no.  He couldn’t handle another no.

So he’d decided to get a start on the vodka in the freezer.  Wasn’t like he could bring it with him or leave it behind.  After the first glass, he decided that he should just move the couch himself; it wasn’t _that_ big, after all.

After getting the couch thoroughly wedged in the doorway and unable to move it forward or back. Asher went back for a second glass.  He sat on the floor by the door, leaning on the wall and working on his third glass.  Or fourth.  He’d lost track.

Moving a couch.  Hunting.  Paying rent.  Being a good brother, uncle, and son.  Just one more thing on the list of what he wasn’t very good at.

“Knock knock,” a young, cheery feminine voice called out from his open door.

Asher blinked at the room, then leaned over, trying to peer around the couch.  “Hello?”

The family resemblance was striking.  The girl -- fresh faced and probably newly out of her final teen years -- stood about five-six, with the same auburn hair as Erika’s and dimpled, freckled cheeks when she smiled.  Her hair was pulled up and back, but a few strands trailed out around her face.

“We met at the reunion,” she said by way of clarification.  “Sis called and told me you needed a little help today.  I’m Kim.”

Heat bloomed high on Asher’s cheeks as he scrambled to his feet, sloshing some vodka from the glass.  “Shit, yeah, hi.  Come in.”  Then he looked at the couch blocking the way.  “Er...”

Kim laughed, easily grabbing the side of the couch and diving over it.  With a quick roll, she was back on her feet again on the other side.

“One of those famous Paulson Bright Ideas in the works, I take it?”

His face grew warmer.  “I just... I thought I could get it through myself,” he mumbled, taking another drink.

“Hey, at least you tried,” she teased, grinning.  “Unless you’re Professor X or have a dolly, that would’ve been quite a trick.  So should I take the rear, or the top?”

“That’s what she said.”  His eyes went wide; shit, he’d said that aloud.  “I-I mean, I’m fine, you don’t have to.”

Kim laughed again, brows wagging at him.  “That _is_ what she said.  I should know, I said it.”  Her eyes scanned around the living room, then past him into the rest of the apartment.  “What else are you moving?  Or did you get most of it already?”

“Just doing the couch right now.  The rest is just boxes.  I’m leavin’ the bed here for the subletter,” he said, biting his lip.  This was feeling strange.  With a sudden thought, he turned in a slow circle, finally spotting the side table and setting the glass down.  “You wanna drink?  I gotta finish it before next week.”

“Can’t yet,” she replied, sitting on the armrest of the couch and crossing her ankles where they were on the floor.  “Least not legally.  Mom and Dad would wring my neck.”

He gave a snort.  “Seriously?  They let you fight monsters but you can’t drink?”

“That’s what _I_ said,” she laughed.  “But Dad just said that until they lower the age, that’s life.  Doesn’t mean I haven’t taken a trip up to Canada once or twice on scouting trips, though.”  That part she said with a wink.  “Y’got soda or anything?”

“Um...” Asher thought to his nearly empty fridge.  “No.  Sorry.  Beer and water.”

“And whatever it is that’s in _that_ glass,” she said, smirking a bit.  “You’re all flushed.”

“Yeah,” he said, looking down at it.  “Vodka.  Gotta finish it before I go.  Leavin’ next week for Vegas.”

“That’s what Sis told me.  You said you’re subletting though,” her head tipped a bit to the side.  “That mean you’re comin’ back?”

He worried his bottom lip, eyes wandering the room aimlessly.  “I dunno.  Couldn’t break my lease, so I’d sublet either way.”

Kim pushed up off the couch, moving up next to him in order to force his eyes to land on her.  Then she gave him a dazzling smile.  “Y’know... I think I will take that beer.  Just promise you won’t tell my folks.”

He couldn’t help but smile.  “Yeah, you got no worries about that.  I’m good at secrets.”  He went to the kitchen, trying to keep his body between it and her as he snagged a can and tossed it to her.  She caught it in the air with excellent form, then cracked it open and took a swig.  Her face pinched a little, clearly not a fan of the taste, but she didn’t comment on it.

“You’ll have to turn the couch a little on its side to get it through the door,” she commented.  “It’s wider than it is tall.”

Staring at the couch, Asher said, “Yeah, I guess that works.”  He picked up his glass again, taking a sip.  They stood in a moment of companionable silence before Kim moved to lean up against the archway again, watching him with a small smile that was visible between each sip from her can.  He tilted his head.

“What?”

She gave one slim-shouldered shrug, her smile widening.  “I didn’t say anything.”

“You’re _thinking_ something, I can tell.”

“What,” she countered, grinning.  “A girl can’t smile?  Or _are_ you Professor X now?”

He grinned back.  “Naw. Always been more of a Nightcrawler man.”

“Yeah, I _bet_ ,” she mused, smirking as she took another drink.  

Asher narrowed his eyes, studying her, before letting it slide by.  He finished off the drink, setting the glass aside.  “Well, wish I could offer you a seat.  But I’ll get on it,” he said, moving forward and grabbing the couch’s arm and pulling up, trying to position it like Kim said.

“We can sit for a bit.  No rush,” she replied, bumping her hip against his as she passed him and settled on the couch again.  Her knees opened up and she leaned back against it, with the air of someone who knew exactly what kind of image they were presenting.

Asher stared at her, his mouth going lax.  Then he straightened, licking his lips.  “What exactly did Erika say when she sent you here?”

“That you had a lot of stuff going on right now and you could use an extra set of hands and legs.”  Her smile leaned into one cheek.  “Everything else is self-interpretive.”

“Oh.”  He wasn’t sure what to do or how to move, so he just stood there, his thoughts swimming.  “I’m... Sorry, that wasn’t my first glass.  I’m not exactly thinking clear.”

“Probably a good thing,” she said, sitting up and catching one of his hands to give it a little tug toward her.  “Lord knows, you’re blushing like a virgin as it is.”

Asher swallowed hard, looking down at her hand.  This was...complicated.  Not nearly so much as the djinn dream, but definitely not what he was expecting for today.  “You...you seem pretty quick,” he stammered.

“If that’s a problem, I can slow it down a little,” she said, leaning forward to brush her lips over the back of his hand, down across the knuckles.

A shiver ran up his arm, and he unconsciously stepped forward.  “No, no, it’s just...a lot’s been happening.  Been confused lately.  Not been myself.  Haven’t had a woman...act like this for a while.”

“You’re used to being the star player and not having girls take charge with you?”  she asked, turning his hand in hers so she could press a kiss to his palm.  He could feel the faint dart of her tongue, just for a moment, before she pressed her cheek into it.  “Dunno if I can pretend to be some demure girl-next-door sweetheart, honey.  I’m used to getting what I’m after.”

“No, girls take charge with me,” he breathed, stepping even closer.  “I like it when they take charge.”  His thumb ran along her cheek, his groin tightening.  He licked his lips again.  “I just...I dunno.  This feels surreal.”

“How ‘bout you just kiss me first,” she suggested, looking up at him through impossibly long eyelashes.  “And we’ll see where things go from there?”

Letting out a long breath, Asher leaned down, hesitant, as though she might disappear.  But her cheek was still there under his hand, and he let himself meet her lips.  She made this little, barely-there noise in the back of her throat as she leaned into it, bringing one hand to thread over his scalp and along his shorn hair before trailing down his cheek.  Her lips parted beneath his and again there was that little dart of tongue, questioning and insistent against his lower lip.  His mouth parted to it, his hand sliding behind her neck and holding her in place as his tongue thrust into her mouth eagerly.

That little tangle of tongue was enough to pull a real noise from her, high and needy, her arms shifting to circle around him and pull him down to rest between her knees.  The moment he complied she pressed flush against him, scooting to the edge of the couch as her hands gripped his shoulders. He gave a groan, his hips rolling forward.  His hand slid into her hair - perfect, silky - and to her waist, his fingers gripping her hard.

He felt one of her hands drop to cover his, leading it up beneath her shirt, never breaking the kiss.  Her other hand shifted down to his ass, gripping tight through the denim and encouraging him to grind up against her with another little moan.  Asher broke the kiss with a gasp, his hand instinctively cupping her warm breast but his eye darting to the hallway.  “We...we should probably...”

“Close the door?” she offered, cracking a playful smile.

He swallowed, nodding.  Her lips grazed against his, her nose nuzzling down the side of his as well.

“How ‘bout we move to that bedroom of yours?”

“Yes.  Yes, sounds good,” he said, hand tightening.  Again her lips pressed against his, but she didn’t move just yet.  

“Hey,” she said gently, bringing one hand up to stroke his cheek.  “No need to be anxious.  It’s just necking, right?  And maybe a little groping.”

“Yeah, yeah I know,” he breathed.  “Just, I dunno, is it... I mean, my brother, your sister...”

“Are not you and me,” she told him between kisses, her tongue trailing over his lower lip again before she nipped it.  “And this isn’t their business.”

She was right.  So right.  This was his life, and he could do whatever he wanted with it.  He took her mouth again, wrapping his arms around her as he stood and shifted them both towards the bedroom.  She followed in perfect step, like her body had been made to press against his, and as they moved she slid her hands past the waistband of his pants, grabbing his ass.  With a growl, Asher turned and pinned her against his bedroom wall.  His hands tugged her shirt up, gripping her breast over her bra, and she gasped in response, grinding against him.

“Knew you had it in you,” she praised, moving one hand up along his scalp once more.  “Don’t stop.”

He nipped his way down her neck as his hands pulled her breasts free atop her bra.  Then he dipped lower, pulling her nipple between his lips.  Kim let out a whimper, grinding against him hard, her hands moving down between them to find his button-fly and work it open.  Asher gasped, his whole world tilting, but wanting it more desperately than before.

“Want every inch of you,” he groaned, nipping at her breast.  Her lips dropped to his temple as her hand slid between the fabric and skin. She took hold of him and gave him one long stroke, pulling a whimper from him.

“Then _take_ it,” she breathed, her tongue tracing the shell of his ear.  “Any way you want.”

“Want you to ride me.”  His hips snapped towards her touch.  “Want to watch and touch those beautiful breasts as you take my cock.”

She might have looked young, but the way she looked at him now spoke of much more experience.  Everything about the way she moved, the noises she made, spoke of someone who knew how to get the best response.

Pulling her hand free from him, she paused just long enough to pull her shirt off over her head and unsnap her bra.  Then she was dropping down on her knees, the wall behind her head and his hips in front of him as she opened his pants, yanked both them and his boxers down, then slid her lips over the head of his cock.

“ _Oh god_ ,” he groaned, his hand bracing against the wall.  “God, you can’t be real.”

That only got a little giggle from her as she rolled her tongue across the hypersensitive skin, down the slit and along the ridges, then pulled back and ran her tongue down the side.  She made a show of dragging her tongue back up again along the underside, pressing a wet kiss to the tip before driving her mouth down deep.  His body broke out in shivers, his mouth slack as he gasped for breath.

“Please, Kim, I’m not--I’m not going to last.  Want you, now.”

Her mouth left him and she stood to her full height again, dragging the bottom of her foot against the back of his calf.  

“Take me to bed then, pretty boy,” she told him, giving him another slow smile.

He slid his arms around her glorious body, holding her tight to him as he walked backwards until the back of his knees hit the bed.  He sprawled back, shifting up the bed before grabbing her hand and pulling her on top of him.  She pressed close, her mouth finding his as her hand slid between them.  In a matter of seconds he was sliding in deep, barely meeting any resistance.  She moaned into his mouth, rocking down against him as her arms circled his neck.  Asher’s back arched desperately, his fingers digging into her back as he thrust up into her.  Then he dragged a hand between them, roughly massaging her breast and pulling a high, keening noise from her.  

She broke the kiss and nipped hard at his neck, then his clavicle, rolling her hips deep against him before finally leaning back.  Her hands slid to rest on his thighs and she arched her back, rocking shallow and fast, the snap of their skin colliding filling the space between her little mewling gasps.  Asher’s eyes were fixed on her, his hips rocking desperately.

“God.  Fucking god, oh god,” he moaned in litany, both hands reaching to grab her beautiful breasts, thumbs running across her nipples.  Everything inside him lurched, his back arching hard as he came with a yell.

Kim leaned over him again, still rocking through it, her mouth pressing to his as her hands slid up into his hair.  Asher gasped as he came down, his whole body shaking.  And then he felt heat rising to his face.  What was that, five seconds?

“Sorry,” he breathed into her mouth.

“Don’t apologize,” she said, still grinding against him.  “Happens to the best of ‘em.  Just fix it.”

He nodded, twisting a hand in her hair.  “You want to ride my tongue?”

She nodded, smiling widely.  “You okay with tasting yourself on me?”

He smiled back.  “I’ll live.  It’ll be worth it to make you writhe.”

“Good answer,” she said, taking his mouth in a deep kiss and rolling her hips against his one last time, before adding, “Fuck, but you feel so good filling me up.”

Asher licked his lips again.  “Maybe I could do it again sometime.”

Her tongue darted out, catching against his before she finally pulled back, inching up his chest.  “I sure hope so.”

His hands slid down her thigh then around under her ass, guiding her up until she was finally straddling his head.  His stomach flipped as he leaned up, running a tongue along her clit.  He could hear Kim reach for the headboard and grab it, her breath hitching in her chest as her thighs gave a little shudder.

“That all you got?” she said down at him, her voice a little breathless.  “C’mon.  I got you off in less than a minute.  You’re gonna have to do better than that.”

“That wasn’t all I have in me,” he said, a smile in his voice.  Then he tugged her down, thrusting into her, his hands running up the insides of her thighs.  The taste was unsettling but he didn’t stop, trying to drive for the heart of her.

Kim let out a little gasp, her head tipping back as she cried out toward the ceiling.  Her hips began to rock down against his mouth.  

“Oh yeah, baby, _like that,_ ” she moaned.  “That’s it, that’s it, _that’s it, yes._ ”

He drove deeper before pulling back, sucking her clit between his lips and then diving in again.  The space between her little whimpering cries grew shorter as they grew longer, her thighs shaking against his cheeks, until finally she squeezed her thighs around his head.  Her whole body arched against him and he tasted a flood of their mingled taste on his tongue.  

“Oh _god,_ oh my god, _oh god yes Asher yes--!_ ”

He tried to ride her wave as long as he could, finally running his tongue along the length of her before he pulled back.  His chest heaved with long breaths, though he turned and kissed her inner thigh.  “That fix it?”

“Merit badge for you, sir,” Kim panted, looking down at him with a glazed-over smile and shimmying partway down his chest.  She ran both hands over his head, then leaned down to kiss him thoroughly.

“Feeling any better?”

The warm, soft foam that had enveloped Asher’s brain drained away.  “Well, I was,” he said, brows furrowing.  “Did you just pity fuck me?”

“No,” she replied, kissing the underside of his chin before trailing her lips down his neck.  “Nothing about that was done out of pity, honey.   _Believe_ me.  I wanted you, and I was gonna pull out every trick I had to get what I wanted.  You seemed a bit tense before, is all.”

His mind still wasn’t at rest.  “Why?  Why now?”

Kim pushed up on her hips so she hovered over him, her ponytail hanging down over her shoulder to pool on his chest.  “Why _not_ now?” she countered, bringing one hand up to stroke his face. 

He bit his lip, studying her face.  “I dunno.  I had someone doing a pretty good job of convincing me this life was a psychotic dream.  This doesn’t seem like reality right now.”

Kim frowned a little, her hand going still.  “The djinn?”

Asher swallowed.  “Erika told you?”

“I might’ve eavesdropped while she was telling our mom,” Kim said, her voice touched with a little guilt.

“She told your mom.  Great.”  Just how many hunters were going to know he was a fuck up?  He closed his eyes.  “Jesus, sorry, I’m being an ass.  Guess I need more vodka.”

“Hey,” Kim said, her voice gentle as she brought her other hand up to his other cheek.  “Don’t.  Don’t talk like that.  Everyone makes mistakes.  You think we’re just born out of the womb knowing exactly what to do?”

“Yeah?  How many times you almost get your family killed?”

Kim brushed her lips against his.  “One time too many,” she said.

His body relaxed a little and he pressed briefly into the kiss.  “Why me?” he asked, quieter this time.

“Because the older one was taken,” she teased, then immediate kissed him a little deeper.  “Give yourself a little credit, yeah?  You’re hella smart, and gutsy, not to mention hot.  What’s not to like?”

“But you never... I mean, I never saw you hitting on me before.”

“Maybe because you weren’t looking at me,” she replied, bumping her nose against his.  “Or maybe because I had my own hang-ups.  Or maybe it wasn’t the right time.”

He let out a breath of a laugh.  “Yeah, a week before I move across country is the perfect time,” he said, sliding a hand along her arm.

“Vegas isn’t that far,” she said.  “Only two days, if you red-line it.”  Her lips quirked in a smile.  “That mean you’re interested in doing more than just this with me?”

And there went his face again, erupting in heat.  “I...I mean, if you want to.  Wasn’t sure if this was, y’know, something or just a, a once something.”

“That’d be why you’re all concerned about my not speaking up and this being a pity fuck and all that other stuff,” she pointed out, grinning at him and nipping at his lower lip.

“I’ve just never had a woman jump in bed with me like that,” he blurted.  “There’s normally like a date or something first.”

“You offered me a drink,” she pointed out, her eyes bright with restrained laughter.  “I’m helping you move.  That could be a date.”

He gave a laugh.  “I swear I’m smarter when I’m sober.  I really do.”  He closed his eyes, tiredness sweeping over him.  He had a shift tonight, too.  Not a good sign.  

“Don’t cheapen the moment, Paulson,” she said, nipping his clavicle again and giving a little wiggle of her hips against his.  “I seduced you.  That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.”

“Mmm, I’m good with that.  I’ll be sure to tell everyone of your conquest,” he said, mouth quirking in a smile.

“Don’t sleep,” she whined, moving to dig her fingers into his sides.  “You gotta get used to operating on four hours of sleep or less, mister!”

His whole body jerked, his hands grabbing her wrists.  “Holy fuck, why?”

“You think monsters and demons take naps?” she countered, slipping out from his grip easily and going at him again.  Her knees tightened against his sides, showing a surprising amount of strength.

“Jesus fuck!” he squeaked, squirming and bucking uselessly under her.  He dug his heels into the mattress, trying to roll her over and nearly succeeding, but she took advantage of his momentum to flip him back onto his back again.  Her high, musical laughter filled his ears.

“C’mon, greenie!  Show me whatcha got!  If you can’t get me off you, how’re ya gonna get a banshee or a werewolf off?”

“I’d have a f-fucking weapon!” he gasped between the forced laughs.  

He knew in his head that this was play, that everything was fine.  But his gut was starting to panic, remembering glowing blue eyes and a hand pressing through his back.  He jerked violently to the side again, sending them tumbling off the bed.  They landed in a pile of limbs and blankets on the floor, and Kim let out a little yelp of surprise, her hands going still immediately.  Their panted breathing filled the silence that fell between them.

“Sorry,” she breathed.  “I’m sorry.  That was-- I’m sorry.”

“No--that, that was my fault,” Asher said, not sure how to move without putting more pressure on her.  “You...okay?”

“Yeah,” she said, bringing both hands up to his face.  He managed to end up on top in the falling, and her flushed face peered up at him with equal parts concern and empathy.  “I didn’t mean to trigger you.  I wasn’t thinking.”

“Don’t,” he said firmly, his legs squirming in the tangle of blankets, trying to get off of her.  “I was just being stupid.”

“You’re not stupid,” she said, grabbing him at his forearms and twisting one leg up to latch behind his knee.  “You’re not, okay?”

He gave a snort.  “You hardly know me; you don’t know how dumb I am.”

“There’s a difference,” she pointed out, her voice just as firm, “between stupid and dumb.  Dumb is forgetting to flip the safety back on your gun and shooting yourself in the foot.  Stupid is not listening to your instincts when they’re telling you to go where you need to go.  Stupid is freaking out the cute boy by making him remember how he was some djinn bitch’s juicebox for three days because you wanted him to keep kissing you.  You’re not stupid.”

He closed his eyes, feeling so small.  “Please don’t.  I can handle it.”

Kim slid her hand behind his neck and pulled him down, kissing him again, with the tenderness of a long-time lover and not just an unexpected tumble in the hay.  Her other arm circled around his back, hugging him against her.  She made that little noise in the back of her throat again, just like earlier when they’d first kissed, and she kept kissing him until the tension in his body started to ease.  Asher found everything melting away from the two of them, his thoughts centering on her mouth, her body.  He found himself kissing a trail down her neck, then his nose brushed the hollow of her clavicle.  He turned his head, resting it against her chest, hearing the deep thrum of her heart.  They couldn’t stay that way long; it couldn’t be comfortable for her.  But for now he let himself sag in relief.  It had been so long since he’d been held.

Her hands continued to rove over him, smoothing along his back.  “You’re gonna be okay, all right?” she said gently.  “It’s good, what you’re doing.  Don’t let anyone tell you anything else, okay?  Being a hunter is a thankless job, but the people who can do it and save people?  It’s the best feeling in the world.  And you don’t have to be alone in it.  There’s other people who can and will help you.  I mean, you’re Mr. Hunter’s Hub, right?  You could find dozens of hunters willing to help you out and teach you.  And...”  She swallowed.  “I’ll help you, too.  If you want.”

Warmth washed over him, his hand sliding up her torso.  “I thought if my own brother didn’t think I could do it, no one would.  But if you don’t think you’d be wasting your time,” he said, shifting up so he could look down at her, “I’d like that.”

“I don’t think it’s because he doesn’t think you could do it,” Kim said gently.  “He’s just bein’ a big brother.  You think me, being the youngest girl, didn’t get a whole bunch of crap about how I didn’t need to hunt because everyone else in my family did, yadda yadda yadda?  Even Sis hesitated.  They wanted to make sure I didn’t get hurt or die.  Both those things happen.  They _have_ happened, to members of our family.”

He shifted carefully, his side hitting the blanketed floor.  “But that’s stupid, zeroing in on one person over another.  I don’t want Mike to get hurt or die either, but that never stopped him.”

“That’s family for ya,” she said, turning on her side to face him and trailing a hand up his arm.  “Self-sacrificing. I would gladly jump in front of a bullet for any of my family to keep them alive, but supposedly it’s never my job being the youngest girl.  I’m s’posed to just sit there and watch them die and avenge them.”

Her voice was equal parts bitter and fond, but her eyes had settled around his throat, unfocused and far-away.  The expression was so much like everything he felt inside that he couldn’t help leaning forward, taking her mouth in a slow kiss.  When he pulled back, his lips still brushed hers.

“Fuck that. We’ll do what we want.”

Kim let out a little breath of a laugh, smiling against his mouth and pressing another soft kiss to his lips.

“I wish I’d talked to you sooner.  I feel kinda dumb now.”

“I wish I’d had a clue.  Didn’t know shit until you jumped me; that’s kinda embarrassing, y’know.”

That caused her to laugh again.  “For who?  You, or me?”

“Me.  I’m supposed to be going around and assuming every girl wants to bang me,” he said with a grin.  “And I missed my sister-in-law’s sister checking me out.”

“Oblivious Asher,” Kim replied playfully, climbing on top of him again.  “Clueless Asher.  Poor Sense of Judgment Asher.”

“Hey,” he said, pouting slightly.  Kim leaned down and nipped at his lower lip, tugging it with her teeth and grinning around it as she rolled her hips against his.

“Yes?”

He gave a whimper, his hands sliding to her hips.  “You...you don’t have to be mean,” he whined though there was an airless quality to it.

“You don’t have to be _sensitive,_ ” she countered, pressing down into him again.

“S-suppose not,” he said, his rolling up.  “Fuck, you’re so sexy.”

“Y’gonna punish me for being so mean, daddy?” she teased again, rocking much more deliberately.

His mind and body split in exact opposite directions.  He slid a hand to her ass, giving it a firm swat, which caused her to let out a surprisingly suggestive noise.  “I’m not _that_ old.”

Kim continued to grind down against him, her lower lip between her teeth as her hair continued to escape her ponytail around her face.  With a huff she reached one hand up behind her head to pull the rubber band free, sending it cascading around her shoulders in wispy waves.  He could only stare in awe, reaching a hand up to run into her hair.

His other hand came up to cup her breast, running a thumb across her nipple.  Her eyes fell closed and her head tipped back as she arched into the touch, letting out another little whine.

“Want you,” she breathed.

“Yeah.  Yeah,” he said swallowing, his brow furrowing slightly.  “I know it’s a little late... But you’re...covered, right?”

She hummed in affirmation, turning her lips into his wrist.  “Lesson one: always be prepared.  I’ve had my bases covered since puberty.”

He let out a breath, pushing himself to sit up.  “Good,” he said, breath hot on her lips.  “Because I want to fuck you so bad.”

Kim moaned in response, leaning into his chest and nipping at his lower lip.  “Gimme your best shot, baby.”

He was already pressing hard against her, need pulsing through him.  He gripped her waist, lifting her just enough to press to her entrance.  Her head tipped back and she let out a high, breathless little noise, her hips rolling against his.

“Yeah, oh _god,_ you’re so fucking big,” she whined, clutching his shoulders.  “Bury yourself in that tight little pussy.”

He gave in to impulse, swatting her ass again and rewarded by another whimpering cry.  “Such a dirty girl,” he groaned, plunging her deeper onto him.

“ _Yes,_ ” she gasped.  “Oh _god,_ yes, _yes,_ so deep.  So fucking deep.  I’m so wet, oh god, _Asher--_ ”

“Love it when you say my _name_.”  He thrust up, nipping at her lip.

“ _Ash!_ ” she cried, her nails digging into the meat of his shoulder.  “Oh my _god,_ oh _god,_ fuck me, fuck me, _fuck me_.”

His mouth ran down her neck as he built up a rhythm.  His hands gripped her hard, pulling her to him with every thrust, the sound of skin to skin slapping in his ears.

“So perfect, so _tight_.”

Her hips ground down hard to meet his thrusts.  “Mark me up,” she gasped.  “So everyone knows.  Please, _please_ , Ash, _please._ ”

With a growl, Asher bit down where her neck and shoulder met, sucking hard to the sound of her well-earned gasps of pleasure.  His head was already spinning and he tried to think of anything else, determined not to come up short again.

“Oh _baby_ , yes,” she keened.  “So fucking hot.  Bruise me, scratch me, _fuck me harder,_ oh god, I _love it_ , feels so fuckin’ good.”

“Oh god,” he gasped against her skin, feeling himself tighten.  He tried to distract himself but she was hot and perfect and everywhere.  Digging his nails into her hips, he came.

Kim let out a whine against his neck, grinding against him harder.  “No, no, no, _not yet, I’m not--_ ”  One hand slid between them to where they were joined, rubbing furiously against her clit.  It was that little bit of stimulation that finally threw her over the edge and she cried against his neck, clenching tight around him.  He gulped down air, pressing close to her.  Then he reached a hand between them, working at her clit.

“‘m sorry, baby.  Wanna make you feel good.”

Pulling her hand out from beneath his, she continued to rock against his hand and his cock, trembling with every rush of pleasure.

“ _Fuck,_ ” she whimpered.  “Oh god.”

“That’s my girl, that’s my girl,” he moaned against her neck before biting down again.  Her back arched as she cried out again, louder than the first time, her thighs tightening around his hips.

“ _Yes!_ Oh _god!_  Oh my-- oh god oh _fuck yes yes--_ ”  The words dissolved into formless little whimpers until at last she sagged against him.  Letting out a sigh, Asher kissed every inch of skin he could reach, settling his hands on her thighs.  

“It’s been a while,” he said sheepishly.  Her arms moved to circle under his, hugging him close as she buried her face into his neck.  She smelled like gun powder and some sort of flowers.  It was a strangely comforting combination.

“Shut up, you’re lying,” she panted.  “You’re way too hot to have gone that long without sex.”

He felt his face growing warm.  “I don’t get out much,” he mumbled.  “Only women I was around were drunk ones at the bar, and they always hit on me for free drinks.”

Her face pulled back to look at him, and that close her eyes almost looked gray instead of blue.  The pupils were still dilated and her cheeks flushed, but she looked surprised.

“And you never took anyone home?”

He shrugged.  “It was work; wouldn’t feel right.  Besides, I wasn’t about to sleep with someone who was that drunk.”

“Then you are way too good for me, Asher Paulson,” she said, nosing against his cheek.  “Or maybe the girls at your bar are just fucking idiots, because I would have _easily_ offered to suck you off during your break if it meant getting you to come home with me.”

He smiled.  “I would have said no.  Work is one thing; home is another.”

Kim let out a little laugh.  “Maybe _you’re_ the crazy one, then.  Turning down blowjobs.”

“Who said I was sane?  I never said that,” he said grinning wider and giving her a quick kiss.  “I want to be a hunter, after all.”

“Excuse _you_ , I am the picture of perfect sanity,” she said with an air of fake haughtiness, reaching between them to give his left pec a tweak.

“Oh yes, of course, my mistake.”  He couldn’t stop smiling at her.  He didn’t know what this was, but he wanted to find out. ...In the one week they had.  The smile faltered.  “Wish we’d talked a month ago.”

Her lips brushed against his again before she moved her hands up to stroke his cheeks.  “Would it have made a difference?” she asked, her voice gentle.

“Maybe.  I don’t know.  It would have been nice to have the chance,” he said wistfully.

“I don’t have to stay here, you know,” she told him.  “I only live with my folks because it’s easier.  When I’m on the job, I’m not here.  I’m out there.”

He perked up slightly.  “I’m going to be staying on a friend’s couch.  Might be room for one more.”

“On a _couch?_ ” she said, pushing up on her elbows to hover over him.  “And how do you suggest we do that?  I sleep on top of you every night?”

He gave a laugh.  “That could work.  Or I could sleep on the floor.”

“You’re not sleeping on the floor, geek,” Kim said flatly, bumping noses before kissing him.  “I’ll just bring my camping cot.”

“Probably more comfortable than the couch,” he admitted with a smile.  His hand slid along her arm as he gaze turned thoughtful.  “You’re at least twenty, right?”

Her brows lifted and she smirked down at him.  “Why?  Feel like you’re robbing the cradle?”

He winced.  “Oh god. Please don’t tell me you’re a teenager. That makes it sounds so much worse.”

“My birthday was three months ago,” she told him, still smirking.  “Newly twenty.  You’re safe.”

That didn’t actually make him feel any better.  He let his head fall back, hitting the floor.  “God, I’m old.  And with the sexual prowess of a sixteen-year-old, apparently.”  He rolled his eyes.  “Sure you don’t want to have a night to think it over before we start talking camping cots?”

Kim laughed, shifting above him so they were chest to chest and she could smile against his mouth.

“You having second thoughts, Mister Hunter?” she asked.  “I’m very mature for my age, I hope you know.” 

“Honestly haven’t had much time for first thoughts.  I’ve done more the last month than in the last ten years.”  His stupid mind stepped in and did the math; she’d still been in elementary school ten years ago.  “ _Fuck_.”

“Only if you’re ready for a third round,” she quipped, nipping at his lower lip.  “Seriously, relax.  You know how much older than the girls most guys are in pornos?  Don’t hurt yourself thinking so hard.”

“Unless you’re hiding a camera crew somewhere, I don’t think the porn comparison really applies,” he said wryly, his hands running down her back.  He pressed his lips together.  “My shift starts in a couple hours.”

“You want me to go?” she asked, her brows knitting together faintly.

What a complicated question.  “Not especially.  Wouldn’t say no to helping me move the couch, though,” he said with a small smile.


	2. Chapter 2

Luke was used to hunters occasionally taking up temporary residence in his house.  That wasn’t a big deal.  And the fact that it was Asher coming to stay with him while he got on his feet was even less of an issue.  Hell, it was a non-issue.  Having a best friend who lived four states away was depressing sometimes.  It would be nice to have the jerk within punching distance again.

The problem was whether or not this would end up becoming a full-time thing and if so, he’d have to empty out his study in order to give Asher his own room.  Which he was currently in the process of doing.

On the desk, his phone pinged with a message.  When he checked, it was from Asher.

_i think ive actually crossed over into bad person territory._

“Here we go,” Luke mumbled, flipping open the keypad and typing back rapidly.

_What’d you do now?_

The reply was immediate. _i fucked erikas baby sister._

Luke immediately cackled in response.   _Good job.  You’re going to Hell now._

_twice. im going to hell twice._

“Why twice?” Luke muttered, typing in the same question with lifted brows.

_cuz we did it twice. girl jumped me. i shouldve said no tho right?_

_Hell no, man,_ Luke typed back, smirking as he settled down on the chair where he’d pushed it into the hallway.   _Two consenting adults is beautiful.  Nothing in the constitution about fucking your sis-in-law’s sister._

_shes twenty._

And then, following right after.

_she looks alot like erika._

And that was where the worry actually settled in.  Luke knew Erika.  Luke was more than aware that she was hotter than a girl should allowed to be, but she was a hunter, and Luke didn’t date hunters by principle.  Mixing work with pleasure was never a good idea.

But Luke also knew of the healthy crush Asher was nursing on his sister-in-law, whether or not he was aware of or willing to admit it.  

_And?_

There was a long pause before he got a response.   _i dunno. its weird. shes nice tho._

“Yeah, I bet she is,” Luke said with a smirk.  He’d never gotten a chance to meet the littlest Miller girl, but if she was anything like her big sister, Luke knew she was a spitfire.

_Long as she didn’t leave any lasting scars, is there a problem?_

_i kinda sorta invited her to vegas._

Luke flipped the screen over to the call feature, dialing in.  

It rang twice before Asher answered, sitting nervously on his bed.  “Sorry.  I was kinda drunk and sex-buzzed.  I can take it back,” he said quickly.

“You really should ask me before you go inviting people to live at my house, man,” Luke said, his voice humoring.

“I know,” Asher groaned, running a hand over his face.  “I just... She was naked.  Calling you up would’ve been rude.”

“Hey, _I_ wouldn’t have known you were naked,” Luke pointed out, a hint of disapproval in his tone.  “What’s the plan, then?”

“Would’ve been rude to _her_ , dude.  And I don’t know.  She says she has a cot.  I mean, if you’re not cool with it, we could figure something out.  She could just stay here until I’ve got a job or something.”  Asher spoke in rapid fire, as though he was afraid to leave any air silence.

“Breathe, man,” Luke said, letting out a sigh.  “It’s fine.  Three’s a party.  Or something.  I don’t mind her bein’ here.  I’m just worried about ya, man.”

Asher fiddled with a hole in his pant knee, tugging at the stray threads.  “About what?”

“Because this is a lot of stuff to do all at once.  You didn’t exactly handle the last go easy, in case you don’t remember.”

“That wasn’t my fault,” he said, his voice low.

“I know it wasn’t,” Luke said, standing up and pacing absently.  “I was some lunatic your brother’s girlfriend knew and you’d barely gotten out by the skin of your teeth.  Doesn’t mean you took it calmly, though.  You were a civvy.  And now you’re tryin’ to hunt.”

“So?  That was ages ago.  I know my shit now,” Asher said, not a little heat in his words.

“You know theory,” Luke pointed out.  “Practice is another thing.  And you wanna have a girlfriend and a job?  You don’t think that’s not gonna stretch you a little thin on your first year?”

“If my girlfriend’s a hunter, then it’s hardly a problem.  And I gotta get money somehow; what else am I supposed to do?”

“Don’t worry about money,” Luke said.

“Man, I’m already stealing your couch,” Asher said, his voice tense.  “I’m not mooching more off you.”

Luke stopped, staring out the nearest window.  “You’re not mooching off of me.  I’m sponsoring you.”

Asher gave a snort.  “So I’m an addict now?”

“No,” Luke said flatly.  “Not that kind of sponsor, idiot.  The kind that handles everything else so you can focus on what you’re tryin’ to do.  Like an athlete.  Don’t be a dick.”

“Athlete sponsors get something in return.”  Asher’s voice was quieter, more apologetic.  “I don’t really have anything.”

“You’re becoming a hunter.  And having more hunters in the world is more than enough of an investment, in my opinion,” Luke said, his voice honest and firm.

Something in Asher’s chest tightened.  Luke believed in him.  It was a moment before he could say, “Thanks.  That...that’s more than I was expecting.”

“That’s because you’re not the brains of this operation, genius.  I am.  I thought you knew that by now.”  Luke smiled even though Asher couldn’t see him.  Then there was a beep on the line.  He pulled back to look at the caller ID, frowned a little, then spoke directly into the mic.  “I gotta go.  Contact’s buzzing in.  I’ll call ya later, alright?”

“Yeah.  Yeah, thanks, man,” Asher said sincerely.  “Later.”

* * *

Cole wasn’t exactly supposed to fall asleep in Asher’s arms.  He was old enough to fall asleep in his crib, and the transfer always had the danger of waking him.  But Asher couldn’t help it.  He knew this was probably the last time he’d get to hang out with the little guy on his own.  He’d even called Erika and offered to babysit so she and Mike could go on a date.

Apparently all the playing around had worn Cole out pretty good though, because he didn’t so much as stir as he set him in the crib.  The kid was crawling like a mad thing now, and when Asher was on the floor, he’d taken his knee and pushed up to his feet, bobbing happily before falling onto his diaper.  He’d be walking soon.  Asher’s chest twisted and he leaned down, giving him a quick kiss before he slipped out of the room.

“Sorry,” he said as he entered the living room to find Kim lounging on the couch.  “Took longer than I expected.”

“Hey, no prob,” Kim replied warmly, smiling up at him.  “You’re adorable as hell with him.  It was fun to watch.”

“I think the adorable is more him than me,” he said with a grin, settling next to her and only hesitating a moment before draping an arm around her.  She immediately took his hand and adjusted it to settle on her breast, then winked at him.

“No, it was you too.  I see the little guy enough being passed around whenever Sis comes by, but seeing _you_ with him?  Almost makes a girl wish she wasn’t on the pill.”

Asher gave a snort.  “Yeah, don’t think you want an out-of-work bartender to be your baby daddy,” he said, giving her breast a squeeze.  “No matter how adorable.”

“There are worse things,” she murmured, leaning in to ghost her lips across his neck.

He hissed in a breath, his eyelids growing heavy.  “Aren’t you being naughty?” he teased.  “Flirting with the babysitter.”

“I think we all know just how naughty I can be, mister,” she whispered directly into his ear, then nipped the lobe and traced her tongue in a line just beneath it, where his neck and jaw met.

Squirming in his seat, Asher brought his hand over, sliding it by the hem of her shirt to press along the edge of her bra.  “If your daddy were here, he’d have to punish you for being such a bad girl,” he growled.  “But I guess since I’m in charge, I’ll have to do it.”

“You gonna spank me, babysitter?” she purred, crawling into his lap before straddling him and taking his face in her hands.  She had the vantage point, and her hair cascaded around his face as she looked down at him and gave him a slow smile.

“Think I’m gonna have to,” he said mournfully, even as he slid his hands up her back, fisting in her shirt and pulling it over her head.  “Just look how slutty you’re being.  Someone has to teach you a lesson.”

She nipped at his lower lip, grinding down into his lap as she slid both hands over his scalp.  

“Can’t stop; won’t stop,” she countered.

His hand slid down to her ass, giving it a firm swat to the sound of her high little gasp.  “Don’t back talk me, missy,” he said firmly.  “Get over my lap.  Now.”

“I’m _already_ over your lap,” she argued, putting a fair bit of sass into her voice for show.

Asher’s mouth twitched with a smile but he tried to keep his face serious.  He reached up, grabbing her wrists and pulling her hands away hold them in front of him.  He held her arms firm as he stood, nudging her legs back with his thighs.

She could have easily twisted out of his hold, he knew it, but she didn’t.  A flush rose up into her cheeks as she followed his lead, tugging on her arms but not nearly hard enough to break away.  Bringing her to the kitchen counter, he turned her around, hips pressing into her ass.

“I’m sick of you trying to walk all over me, like some spoiled little princess,” he said, sliding his hands down her arms and pressing them flat to the counter.  Her breath hitched audibly.  “But I’m not your daddy.  I’m gonna punish you like you deserve.”

“ _Fuck,_ ” she breathed, her hands clenching into fists on the countertop but not moving.  A shudder worked its way between her shoulders as she pushed back to meet him.  Her tone turned up in a whine as she turned her head back to look over her shoulder at him.  “I’m sorry.  I’ll be good.  I promise.”

“That’s not good enough,” he said.  His hands reached around, undoing her pants and tugging them down past her ass.

“No, don’t, _please--_ ” she begged, her pupils dilating.  The muscles in either cheek tightened, anticipating the slap.  Asher hesitated just a moment before pushing the thought aside and bringing his hand down in a light slap on her right cheek.  

“Tell me you’re sorry again.”

“I’m _sorry_ ,” she whimpered, pushing back toward his hips again.

“I don’t believe you,” he said, slapping the left cheek slightly harder.  Again she let out a little whimper, her head dropping forward against her chest and her eyes squeezing closed.

“I won’t talk back anymore.  I’m sorry, babysitter, _honest._ ”

“Then you know you deserve this,” he said, swatting her again.  Then he slid a hand between her legs, finding the fabric damp.  “Fuck.  Your daddy know you’re such a horny little girl?”

“Don’t tell my daddy,” she moaned.  “Please, please don’t tell.  I’ll do anything, just-- _please_ , I’m sorry, I promise I’ll be good.”

“Damn right you’ll do anything,” he said, yanking her underwear down before slapping her bare skin.  Kim gasped, high and desperate, her hands finally coming off the countertop.  One moved to grip her breast through her shirt while the other slid between her legs, pushing past the waistband of her jeans.

“God, look at you,” he growled, twisting a hand in her hair.  “Such a slut.  I’m gonna show you what sluts get.”

He quickly worked open his pants, giving his cock a stroke before settling his hand between her legs, sliding a finger inside her.  Kim let out a cry, her body shaking with need as she pushed into the thrust of his finger.

“Daddy told me never to touch there,” she whimpered.  “He said it was bad and it hurt.  Please don’t hurt me, babysitter.  I don’t wanna be a bad girl.  I wanna be a _good_ girl.”

“But you’re not, are you?” he breathed into her ear.  He pressed in deeper, his thrusts fast.  Then he pressed in another finger, and she moaned again, rocking back into his palm.  “You’re such a _bad_ girl.”

“Is that why it feels so good?” she asked, her voice ragged with pleasure.  “Because it’s bad and I’m bad?”

“Yes, only bad girls get to feel this good.”  He pulled his fingers out, settling his cock between her legs to slide along the wet heat, slicking him up.  Another gasp rushed out of her, laced with a needy noise as she tipped her head back to look at him again.  The blue-gray of her irises were nothing more than pair of thin rings.

“I’m so wet,” she whispered, pressing her thighs closed around him so it was that much of a tighter slide.  “Is it good?  Do you like it, babysitter?”

He groaned deep, leaning over her.  “ _Yes_. I’m beginning to believe you’re really sorry.”  He thrust once more before pulling back, positioning at her entrance.  “Just one more thing you gotta do for me, bad girl.”

“Anything,” she breathed, her fingertips brushing against the head of his cock as she reached for him.  “Anything you want.”

He leaned hard over her, pressing her down as he thrust in hard.  The sound of her moan seemed to echo off the walls and bounce back to him.

“ _Ash!_ ”  she cried, her arm reaching back around his neck as she pushed back into him.  “Oh god, oh my _god_ , oh god!”

The way she said his name broke through all pretence.  His hips rocked, pressing deeper.  “ _So good_ , baby, I love being inside you, so hot and tight and wet,” he groaned, slowly building a rhythm.  Her hand fisted in his hair and she craned back to find his mouth, each thrust jarring them apart.  Her eyes were glazed over as she looked into his.

“Fuck me harder, baby,” she begged.  “Wanna feel it in my _bones_ , oh _please_ , so good, so good.”

His mouth fell slack and all he could do was nod.  He gripped one of her shoulders, holding her fast as he drove desperately into her.  “That’s it, that’s it,” he panted.  “Fucking _take it_.”

“ _Yes!_ ” she keened.  “Ohmy _god_ , I’m gonna come, I’m gonna come--!”

He panted a hard breath with every thrust.  “Yes, _yes_ , come for me, baby, wanna feel you tight around me!”

His words seemed to be the final straw, and she went vice-tight around him, letting out a noise caught somewhere between surprise and bliss.  Every muscle in her slight frame seemed to quake.  His spine arched as he threw his head back, ever part of him thrumming hard.

And then he locked eyes with Erika standing in the doorway.

What came from his throat might have been a yell of surprise, but the surge in him only rushed higher and he came harder than he ever had before.

“Is he seriously watching porn in the living room?” Mike called out from somewhere just behind her.  Erika said nothing, but swiftly stepped back out through the doorway and shut it.  Kim froze.

“ _Shit._ ”

“Oh god,” Asher said, voice high and tight.  He pulled out, his hands shaking as he righted himself.  “Oh god, oh god, I’m sorry.”

“Did they see us?” Kim asked, quickly pulling her pants up over her bare ass and trying to resituate her breasts in her bra through the top of her shirt.

“I... Erika did.  Enough, at least,” he said, swallowing hard, and trying not to let his mind linger too much on that.  “Jesus.  Should I tell them to come in?  I don’t know what the hell I should do.”

He didn’t have long to think about it.  Erika and Mike came in a moment later.  Mike looked pissed.  

“Go check on the baby,” Erika said to him, even as he took a breath to speak.  “Just go please, okay?  I’ll handle this.”

“Rika--” Kim started, but Erika cut her off swiftly, her eyes flashing with anger.

“I think it’s time you went home, baby sister,” Erika said, her voice radiating authority.

“Erika, it-- we--” Asher licked his lips.  “I’m sorry, it’s my fault, don’t--”

“You’re--” Mike started, but Erika immediately turned on him, her expression steel, and he growled before stomping off toward the bedroom.  Kim grabbed her jacket from the chair she’d slung it over, putting it on quickly.  In what might have been seen as an act of defiance, she quickly leaned up and kissed Asher on the mouth.

“Call me later.”

“Yeah,” he said, eyes darting between her and Erika and then to Cole’s bedroom door.   _If I’m still alive_.  Kim was gone in a matter of seconds, leaving only Asher and Erika standing in the space between the living room and the kitchen.  It felt like a canyon separated them.

“I didn’t mean for you to see that,” he blurted, hands fidgeting.  “We were... We’ve been...”

“I really don’t want to know,” Erika said, her voice a little flat.  “Jesus, Ash, she’s a few months shy of _a third your age._  When you were finishing high school, she was still in _pigtails._  What--”  She cut herself off, bringing a hand up to rub her eyes, her shoulders slumping a little.

“It-it wasn’t like I _wanted_ to have sex with her.  I mean...” He winced.  “I mean, just, when she came over to help me, she, she wanted me and... I mean, she’s nice, and fun, and I like being with her.”

“Tell me you’re doing this for you, and not some deep, psychological need to emulate your brother,” she said quietly.

He stared at her, not even blinking.  “You aren’t a psychologist, and I’m not your fucking patient, alright?” he said, the words heated.  “Yeah, I’m jealous of what Mike’s got, but I’m not trying to fucking _be him_ by banging your baby sister!”

The sound of Cole crying behind closed doors was enough to turn Erika’s head for a half second, but her eyes immediately returned to Asher’s face.

“I want to believe that, Ash,” she said, her voice even.  “I do.  When Mike started spiraling, worrying about you, I told him you’d find your sea legs, but if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck.”  Her expression turned a little bitter.  “I’m not an idiot.”

He set his jaw.  “I don’t care what you think.  I’m happy and I’m not giving up just because you want me to.”

Erika strode right up to him, a good head shorter but furious.  “I just caught you fucking my kid sister while my infant son was asleep in the other room.  You better change your goddamn tone if you ever want to be allowed into my house again.”

“What?  Like _you_ don’t fuck when Cole’s asleep?” he said wryly before stepping around her to grab his jacket.  “But you don’t want me around, fine.  I’m leaving in a few days anyway.”

Erika grabbed him forcefully at the shoulder and spun him around, her grip hard.  “What the hell have I done to you to get this kind of disrespect?!” she snapped.

“You just accused me of _using_ Kim,” he snapped.  “Forgive me if I don’t take that with a smile.”

“Don’t fucking _deflect_ that back at me, you know damn well I’m talking about more than just sleeping with her in general!” she snarled.  “Jesus fucking _Christ,_ why not just fuck her in our bed, since you’re acting like such a child!  Let me call her back in!  We’ll three leave, so you can deface our trust in you properly!”

“Jesus, whatever!  Fine!  I’ll never darken your doorstep with my depravity again!” he yelled, jerking away from her and storming for the door.  She didn’t stop him, though as he moved through the door, Cole’s crying suddenly became louder as Mike came out of the room with his son in tow.  The front door shutting promptly muffled all noise.

Asher stormed across the lawn, his teeth gritted hard and his eyes growing hot and wet.  He yanked at his car door, but it stuck.  With a frustrated, he yanked again, but it didn’t open.   _Locked.  It’s locked, you fucking idiot_.  He dug his keys out of his jacket pocket, hands shaking with adrenaline but managing to get it open so he could slide in.  He gripped the wheel tight and gave another yell.  It was either that or cry, and he sure as fuck wasn’t going to let himself cry over this.

* * *

Asher called Kim the next afternoon.  He had the first shift at work but would get off at 11, if she was up for hanging out after.  She was.

His stomach was twisting the whole night at the bar, pulling back and forth in his mind about what he was actually going to say to her.  It was almost a relief when she walked in; at least he would have to decide soon.  They hadn’t switched over to full bar yet, and she easily strolled up to him, leaning over the counter and grinning.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” he said, giving in to the impulse and leaning forward to give her a kiss, albeit a brief one.  “I’ll just be a minute.”

Kim settled on a bar stool easily, propping her face up on her hands as she watched him finish up his closing tasks.

“How was your shift?”

“Good.  Usual business,” he said somewhat stiffly.  He stepped a little down the bar, nudging his coworker’s elbow.  “Headed out.  See you Monday, Jeff.”

Then he wended his way out from behind the bar and over to Kim’s side.  “How’re you?”

“Not too bad.”  She moved right up against him, sliding an arm around his hip.  “Packing up a few things.”

He licked his lips nervously, his stomach giving a twist.  “Oh.”  Not sure how else to segue, he shifted an arm around her waist, pulling her with him to the door.  “Sounds busy.”

“Not as much as you’d think,” she admitted.  “One good thing about having a hunter dad: you learn how to pack the essentials and fast.”

He gave her an awkward smile, not sure if they should talk by the car or in it.  As they got nearer, he said cautiously, “I’m worried, though.  If your family’s mad about us... I don’t want that.”

“They’re not mad,” Kim reassured him.  “The only one with a bug up their ass is Ri.  She’ll get over it.  And I don’t care what they think.  It’s my life.”

He rolled his lips, not entirely convinced.  “Erika... she thinks I’m messed up.  That I’m with you because I’m trying to be like Mike.”

Kim frowned, pulling back enough to lean against the car and face him.  He recognized the face.  He’d seen Erika make the same one on occasion.

“Are you?”

“I don’t think so,” he said slowly, though his eyes were on the car.  “I like you.  I like the way you make me feel.  I didn’t think about Mike when I was with you or something.”

“‘Cuz that’d be weird,” she said, leaning in to whisper conspiratorially.  “You thinking about your brother while you were having sex with me.”

His mouth quirked, his eyes meeting hers.  “Would be weird.”  He allowed himself to step closer, one hand going to her hip.  Alright.  So maybe what they were doing was unconventional.  But it  felt right.  He felt better with her.  With hardly a thought, he blurted, “You want to come to family dinner Sunday?”

“Y’mean like a date?” she asked, her smile upping in wattage.

“Yeah.  Probably the most awkward and uncomfortable date ever, since Mike and Erika will be giving us the stink eye, but that’s what family’s for, eh?”

Kim grabbed him at the hips and pulled him closer, then slid both hands into his back pockets.  Leaning up on her toes, she brushed her lips against his, still grinning.

“I’d love to.”

Warmth spread through him as he met her lips, slow and easy and utterly perfect.

* * *

Mike could remember exactly two meals where the tension had been thick enough to cut with a knife.  The first one had been when their mother had brought a man home for the first time after dad died.  Asher was still too little to understand why he was so angry, but his mom refused to bring dates home after that.  The second one had been right after he and Erika had “eloped.”  He had barely been able to meet his mother and brother’s eyes, and Erika had held his hand under the table the entire time.

He’d eaten meals with Kim before.  But the table setting was entirely wrong, and the table round instead of square, and Frank and Penelope Miller were very absent.  The only one unaware of what was happening and why there was such strain was their mother.  Erika put on a polite face, but he could see the strain in her eyes and the glares she kept shooting toward her sister.  And Asher...

“Who wants pie?” Joanna asked.  Mike sat up.

“I’ll get it.”

Asher’s hand tightened on Kim’s knee, where it had rested throughout the meal.  Before that, he’d hardly spent a moment without holding her hand.  It was good, having that anchor when everything else felt off-kilter.  Especially with Mom looking hurt like that.  He knew she hated them fighting - it was the reason she wouldn’t let him skip this meal in the first place - and not knowing the why must make it even worse.

“Want help?” he asked cautiously, looking to Mike.

The words _it’s just pie_ danced on the tip of his tongue, but his eyes fell on his mother just for a moment.

“There’s ice cream too, if you want to make it ala mode,” she offered.  Mike’s eyes turned to his brother’s again.

“Yeah, sure.”

Asher gave Kim a quick, if somewhat forced, smile before getting up to follow Mike into the kitchen.  Of course, he had no idea what to say, so he just went to the cabinet, getting five small plates.  

For a few minutes, the only sounds were glass clinking and the muffled speech of the women talking among themselves.  Mike could distinctly hear their mother’s tone, followed by Kim’s more animated one.  Erika was silent.

He let out a sigh as he sliced the pie into halves, then quarters, before the pieces were small enough to share evenly between them.

“I’m not sorry about Kim,” Asher blurted to the freezer as he grabbed the ice cream.  “It feels like you want me to be, but I’m not.”

“I don’t care, man,” Mike said dryly.  “Do whatever you want.  It’s just weird, because I have difficulty not remembering her playing with Bratz what feels like not too long ago.”

“Then why are you mad at me?” he said, turning.  “Vegas?  The djinn?  Cole?”

“I wasn’t ever mad,” Mike replied, eyes down on the pie.  His shoulders slumped.  “You’re the one who’s been actin’ manic man, not me.”

Asher wanted to argue but clamped his mouth shut.  He knew it was true; he hadn’t been himself.  Closing the freezer, he grabbed the ice cream scoop and started to get to work.  Then, almost as though he was sliding the words across the countertop, he said, “What did the djinn make you see?”

Every muscle in Mike’s frame suddenly went tight.  “I don’t wanna talk about it.  Not here.”

The knot that had been loosening in Asher’s chest jerked hard.  “Okay,” he said quietly, putting the ice cream back.

“You don’t want to know, Ash,” Mike said, his voice strained.  “Just... just don’t ask me, okay?  Djinns, they... you lose track of time in your own head with then.  It might’ve been less than ten minutes, but it was so much longer inside.”

“Promise, I know.”  Asher grabbed a couple of the plates, headed back to the dining room.  As he started them setting out, Mike suddenly tipped his head around the corner.

“Mom, you’re outta caramel syrup.  I’m gonna go get some.”

“You sure?” Joanna asked, her brow furrowing.  “I could’ve sworn--”

“Ash, c’mon,” Mike interrupted, picking up his jacket from the hook.  

Asher stared at him a moment before following, his lips pursed uncertainly.

“Everything okay?” Erika said, her body poised to get up, but Mike just moved over to where she was sitting, dropping a kiss on her forehead.

“Yeah.  Just can’t have hot apple pie ala mode without caramel.  It’s tradition.”

She nodded with a sigh.  Asher met Kim’s gaze with another quick smile before heading out the door.  He walked in silence, not really sure what Mike wanted.  He almost made a joke about suspecting he was about to be kidnapped, but the situation didn’t seem open to a laugh.

It was only when they were in the car and driving what felt like ten minutes in silence before Mike finally spoke.

“I knew, going straight in, that it was a djinn.  I got a good look,” he said, his voice low.  “She tried to feed me a sugar-coated happy life with Dad and Mom and Cole must’ve been... no, he was.  He was graduating high school.  We were all in the front row and we had two more kids, both girls, but I knew.”  He took a shaky breath, then let it out.  “And when I threw myself over the balcony, trying to wake myself up, she put me in the hospital.  In the mental ward.”

Asher winced.  “That can’t have been fun.”

Mike was quiet for a long time before he muttered a tight, painful ‘yeah’ of affirmation.  Pulling into the grocery store parking lot, he killed the engine, but didn’t step out.

“Right after the shtriga,” he said in the same gravelly voice.  “Mom thought... she thought I was having PTSD or something.  That I was making shit up.  She put me in therapy and on pills and...”

His expression drained.  “Jesus.  I don’t... I don’t remember that,” Asher said quietly.

“You were like... seven or eight,” Mike replied.  “Mom probably told you I was at soccer practice or something.”

“I wish I’d remembered it,” Asher said, his chest heavy.  “Supported your story.  You...you’ve always done so much for me.  I wish I could’ve helped, somehow.  That I could’ve...”  He gave a bitter laugh.  “That’s what the djinn gave me.  I’ve been thinking about it, a lot, and I think in that world I saved you from the shtriga.”

Mike reached over, giving his shoulder a squeeze, before dropping his hand away and running it over his face.

“She probably would’ve thought we were both going crazy.  That’s why I never...talked about it again.  Not ‘til the whole pocket watch fiasco.”

Asher’s mouth quirked.  “Sucked at the time, but I’m still glad I picked that thing up.”  His expression darkened, though, and he swallowed.  “I didn’t save you the second time.  The vamps got you.”

“Well that’s where the bitch got it wrong,” Mike said.  “Because I told them no, when they asked me.  Told them I’d rather die.”

“Yeah. She didn’t know how big a badass you are,” Asher said, smiling at him.  There was more behind it as he said, “I don’t want to lose you ever again.”

“What, you thought I was goin’ somewhere?”  Mike gave him a half-smile, then leaned over to muss his head.  The hair was too shorn to muss properly, like he was prone to do.  

Asher ducked away from the touch as a matter of course, before meeting Mike’s eyes.  “Are you okay with me going to Vegas?”

“No,” Mike said honestly.  “But I’m not going to stop you anymore.”

It wasn’t exactly the answer he wanted, but it would do.  “Yeah, like you could stop me.”

Mike scoffed at him, then tugged the keys out of the ignition and popped the door open.  “C’mon, jerk.  We need to get home quick before mom opens another bottle of wine and starts crying about you leaving the nest again.”

“The two of you are guilt machines,” Asher called after him.

**Author's Note:**

> Please follow effyeateamfreewill2 on tumblr for more great stories and content in the TFW 2.0 universe.


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